Being Thankful in the Process

Life will cause us to experience naturalstorms that will temporarily inconvenience us.

Then there are the every day storms that interrupt our days in the form of difficult obstacles, unhealthy stress and broken relationships.

What do you do when a storm uproots your life sending a tornado of chaos into your day?

Recently, storms caused a surmountable amount of damage in various areas of the mid-south. People found themselves without power, transportation and even shelter. There soon became a high demand for the basic necessities of food and water.

Having to endure this kind of unforeseen setback can be very frustrating. It can stimulate many emotions to arise. Most of them being unhealthy ones.

So what do you do during the process?

“For this reason, since the day we heard about you, we have not stopped praying for you and asking God to fill you with the knowledge of his will through all spiritual wisdom and understanding. And we pray this in order that you may live a life worthy of the Lord and may please him in every way: bearing fruit in every good work, growing in the knowledge of God, being strengthened with all power according to his glorious might so that you may have great endurance and patience, and joyfully giving thanks to the Father,” (Colossians 1:9-12, NIV).

When you are walking around in the dark trying to find relevant things to get you through your storm, panic is a natural reaction or thought. But it is in these times that you have to train your flesh to yield to your spirit.

One of the first things that the people of God do when hearing of someone experiencing a crisis is to pray. It is comforting knowing that others are praying for you when you are in the midst of a storm or crisis situation. But you also have to use your strength and powerto pray to God and praise Him while you are going through the process.

Yes, your situation might be bad. But it could have been worse. We don’t always identify the blessings first when we are hit by tragedy. However, it is important to develop a spirit of gratitude, one of thanksgiving first when experiencing a challenging moment in life.

The enemy would rather have you be filled with complaints and bitterness when you are drowning in lemons. The enemy would rather watch you cry over the lemons instead of seeing the opportunity to make lemonade.

I challenge you to see past the unpleasant picture that is causing an eye sore to you right now. What blessing is being blocked from your vision right now? What do you have to be thankful for right now?

Try being thankful in the process and you will start to release blessings in your situation. And what seems like the worst day or situation will soon turn to a not as bad as it appears moment. Then you can start moving forward allowing God to finish processing you through this!

Shulanda J. Hastings

Shulanda J. Hastings is a blogger, Christian counselor, and evangelist who serves as an ambassador to the faith-based community; helping them break mental health barriers. She is the Best-selling author of the Beauty of My Thorns novel series and mental health memoirs, Keeping My Faith While Saving My Mind.